The autothermal entrained flow gasification of solid, liquid and gaseous fuels has been known for many years in gas generation technology. The ratio of fuel to gasification agents containing oxygen is selected in such a way that for reasons of quality of the synthesis gas higher carbon compounds are cleaved completely to form synthesis gas components such as CO and H2 and the inorganic constituents are discharged as molten slag (J. Carl, P. Fritz, NOELL-KONVERSIONSVERFAHREN [NOELL CONVERSION PROCESS], EF-Verlag für Energie-und Umwelttechnik GmbH 1996, p. 33 and p. 73).
Using various systems which have gained acceptance in the field, gasification gas and the molten inorganic fraction, e.g. slag, can be discharged from the reaction chamber of the gasification appliance separately or together, as set out in DE 19718131.7A1.
Both systems which are provided with a refractory lining and cooled systems, as known for example from DE 4446803 A1, have been introduced for internal delimitation of the reaction chamber contour. The gasification burners are disposed at the head, in other words at the top, of the gasification reactor, the flow is oriented downward, gasification gas and slag is discharged through a central opening at the base of the gasification chamber. Such gasification reactors are demonstrated for example in DE 41 09 231 C2 and the Chinese patents 200 4200 4200 7 and 2004 100 73361 of the Northwest Chemical Institute. This reactor, whose gasification burner is likewise located at the head of the reactor, delimits the gasification chamber by means of a refractory lining, in which cooling tubes are embedded. The gasification gas leaves the gasification chamber at its center together with the ash that is molten to slag and is routed by way of a central guide tube into a water bath, in which the hot crude gas and slag are cooled. The cooled crude gas rises up out of the water bath and is removed by way of a pipe. The slag is collected in the water bath and expanded cyclically by way of an air lock and discharged from the gasification system.